Entries in Violence
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In an article titled "Quentin Bryce urges focus on gender inequality to tackle domestic violence", published on April 6th, Guardian journalist Melissa Davey claimed that "Two women are killed through domestic violence in Australia every week, and it is also the leading preventable cause of injury and death in women under 45, according to VicHealth".

Men's Health Australia wrote to the Guardian explaining the following:

The latest data from the Australian Institute of Criminology found that, during the period 2010 to 2012, 121 females were killed by an offender with whom they shared a domestic relationship (1.2 per week). This rate would have to almost double to reach the two per week claim made by Davey.

The VicHealth data is also seriously misrepresented. They found that intimate partner violence is the biggest contributor to ill health and premature death in women aged 15–44. 82% of this burden of disease was from poor mental health (depression and anxiety) and substance abuse, while just 2.3% was from homicide and 0.7% from physical injury. The leading cause of death for Australian women 15-44 years is malignant neoplasms, and the leading cause of injury is "other unintentional injuries".

Congratulations are due to the Guardian, who have now corrected the article in question.

"On average at least one woman is killed as a result of domestic violence in Australia every week, and it is the biggest contributor to preventable ill-health and premature death in women under 45, according to VicHealth."

The Guardian also published a footnote reading:

"This article was amended on 16 April to correct the reported rate at which women are killed by intimate partners. Women die this way in Australia at the rate of slightly more than one a week, according to Australian Institute of Criminology statistics – 109 in 2010-11 and 2011-12 combined. Unofficial figures for the first few months of 2015 show a similar rate."

Following last week’s launch of Our Watch – a new national initiative aimed to prevent violence against women and their children – the One in Three Campaign has released a new analysis of the latest Australian data on male victims of family violence.

Senior Researcher Greg Andresen said, “We are very glad to see violence against women being taken so seriously by the Australian Government. However we are extremely concerned that one third of victims of sexual assault and family violence are excluded by Our Watch and its sister organisation ANROWS simply on the basis of their gender.”

The analysis of the ABS Personal Safety Survey and the AIC Homicide in Australia, 2008–10, published today by One in Three, challenges the claim that the vast majority of family violence is committed by men against women and children. Using the same data sources as Fact Sheets recently released by ANROWS, the new data analysis paints a very different picture of gender and family violence in Australia.

Males who have been sexually abused (possibly still undisclosed) and sought and/or received counselling support are invited to complete their own questionnaire online at http://canberra.az1.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_1zd1ZwJetVexXud. New questions have been added to this survey, as suggested by male victims of sexual assault.

Large numbers of men are subjected to Sexual and Domestic Violence (SDV). For example, official statistics from Australia estimate that 336,000 men (4 per cent of the male population) have been victims of sexual violence and 448,000 men (5.3 per cent) have been subjected to partner violence since they turned 15 years old. Male victims often share similar security needs with female victims. However, there are also gender-specific barriers to accessing security and justice, and the issue of SDV remains especially shrouded in silence and misconceptions when it comes to male victims. A literature review indicated that while academic research on these topics does exist and several NGOs have recorded relevant good practices, there is currently no single document where this information is synthesised in such a way that it can be readily used by the security sector. This guidance note is therefore designed to serve as a tool to enable security sector institutions to provide a more effective gender-sensitive approach to preventing and responding to SDV against men.

The best ad about male victims of domestic violence we've ever seen. Already going viral with almost 1.5 million views.

40% of domestic violence is against men in the UK. #ViolenceIsViolence, no matter who it's aimed at. The Mankind helpline costs just £35,000 per year to run, by donating a few £ you will help us to support men suffering in this way get the support they need. Please donate here: https://mydonate.bt.com/charities/mankindinitiative - plus follow us @mankindinit